Can history, especially religious history, be truly objective? Keith
Hopkins, professor of ancient history at King’s College, Cambridge, explores
Christian/Pagan/Jewish relations in the Roman world during the first three
centuries of the Common Era (CE) through a variety of unusual and unique
formats to illustrate his theory that history can not be objective and
therefore need not be related in such a formal fashion.

This is NOT your usual straight forward history text! It is not usual
even for a social history, which this in actuality is. Chapters one and
five have two intrepid 21^st century time travelers detailing
their “vacation” in Pompeii, Egypt, and Rome. Chapter two is a loosely
woven script for a TV docu-drama set in Rome with interviews and dialogue
between a survivor of Qumran and Justin Martyr (an actual historic figure).
I must admit by the time I reached chapter three, a more tradition telling
of history, I found the fact by fact, name-date-place format to be quite
dull and boring. Additional chapters include a fictionalized exchange of
letters between a new Christian convert and his mentor about socializing
with non-Christians (chapter six), Jesus according to the apocryphal gospels
(chapter four), and the image and role of God according to Gnostic and
Manichaean Creation stories (chapter seven).

Professor Hopkins warns his audience in his introduction that his unorthodox
approach might appear quite “irreverent” to some. He also admits to not
being a Christian while having a backgrounding in the Christian faith.
Even without his warning, as a Christian, myself, I did not find his words
about Christianity or Jesus objectionable. I did, however, find his approach
a bit disconcerting. I admit that I enjoyed reading his unusual presentations
and yes, he used copious endnotes to prove the accuracy of his facts. (I
even picked up a title or two to explore for late on.) What I found un-nerving
was sorting what might be fact from what might be fiction. As some one
who has an occasion to teach history, I am concerned that some readers,
especially students, might believe everything they read without taking
any effort to sort fact from fantasy. I am also concerned that modern media
driven readers who are used to fast-paced entertainment might find his
style SO enjoyable and entertaining that returning to reading a standard
history text might be too boring to even bother.

I agree with Professor Hopkins that history, especially religious history,
is not often objective. Most religious histories, however, are not intended
to be objective as much as they are to enhance the faith of members of
the faith community. Equally many early historians, secular as well as
religious, had less intention of writing objective history then they did
to fulfill the protocols of their patrons. Histories, according to the
rigors of modern historic scholarship, just did not exist in earlier ages
and to apply modern standards for historical accuracy and objectivity will,
of course, reveal their short-comings. These issues are discussed by means
of an exchange of letters to and from noted fictionalized scholars discussing
the style and content of the relevant chapters.

I recommend this book to historians, history teachers, and to those
interested in the study of written history. For history scholars, this
is a delightful beach book. It is light easy reading and quite entertaining.
Do not get me wrong, there are many issues covered in this book that writers
and teachers of history need to confront and address. I recommend this
book with the caveat that it might prove to be disconcerting to some traditional
historians.

© 2001 Suzanne Garrison-Terry

Suzanne Garrison-Terry

Education: B.A. in History from Sacred Heart University, M.L.S. in
Library Science from Southern Connecticut State College, M.R.S. in Religious
Studies/Pastoral Counseling from Fairfield University, and a M.Div. in
Professional Ministry from New Brunswick Theological Seminary. She is currently
completing a Certificate in Spirituality/Spiritual Direction from Sacred
Heart University (July 2001). She is a Licensed Minister of the United
Church of Christ and an Assistant Professor in Library Science at Dowling
College, Long Island, NY.

Interests in Mental Health: I am interested in the interplay between
psychology and spirituality. My current research focuses on the role of
hormonal fluctuation during puberty, pregnancy, and peri-menopause as a
stimuli for mystical experiences. Through the study of autobiographical
accounts of the mystical experiences of “historically accepted” female
Christian mystics and additional biographical information, I am analyzing
the connection between the onset of mystical experiences and biological
data/symptomology for the potential existence of hormonal fluctuation or
irregularity. If this sounds like an unusual topic, nota bene how many
medieval female mystics began having “vision” on or about the age of 40!

This review first appeared online Sept 1, 2001

Categories: General, Philosophical